Hed have to be patient. Hed find the doctor soon enough. There was not going to be any escape. Not for long.

CHAPTER TWENTY THREE

Morgan had not found any other likely suspects in the directory. Dolan had been the only one whod left under suspicious circumstances. It had been a long night and his eyes had been burning by the time he went to bed.

He woke the next morning feeling more clear-headed than he had in months. He forced himself out the door to run, something that hed done four to five days a week when hed still been with Ashley, but hadnt bothered with for months. His excuses had run the gamut from it being too cold and dark to acknowledging that he was hungover. Not today, though. Today he made his legs turn over and his heart rate rise. He could feel the toxins leaving his system. Not just the booze and the crappy fast food. Some of the anger and hate and grief were going as well. It was all poison.

By the time he hit the door of his apartment building, sweat streamed down the sides of his face and he gasped for air. Hed only run a mile, but it was more than hed done in quite some time. It would take time to work back up to his usual five-mile runs, but hed get there.

There would be a new normal. He wasnt sure what it was going to look like yet, but it would come. It wouldnt include Lexa. He doubted it would include Ashley. It would include him, though. He wasnt going anywhere. Sabotaging himself wasnt going to help anyone.

His phone rang as he let himself into the apartment and he looked at the Caller ID. Danielle. Maybe shed found something on Dolan. Maybe shed figured out how to nail him. Maybe shed forgiven him for his poor behavior. Yes?

Hi, Morgan. It looks like Dolan wasnt involved with any of our victims.

Morgan hit the door frame with his fist. Youre sure? Damn it all to hell. Hed actually wanted it to be that prick.

I am. I checked the police reports on the harassment claims. There were three young women who accused of Dolan of misconduct, but none of them were our victims. There is no reason that Dolan would go after any our three. She paused. His alibi, such as it was, checked out, too. Apparently being blind drunk doesnt stop you from ordering take-out food and liquor deliveries. I have several delivery people who dealt with him during crucial time periods and they all remember him. Not fondly, by the way, but still they remember him. Plus his phone never left his home.

So what do we do now? Morgan sank down on one of the stools at his breakfast bar and cradled his head in his hands.

I look for another connection.

Just you? Morgan asked, not missing the pronoun she used.